08 Aug 08 Flock
I’ve installed Flock on one of my computers. I am finding it really useful for Social Media use.
The sidebar which I can display or hide with one click is great for seeing who’s updated on services such as Twitter, Dig, Flickr, YouTube, Pownce, and Facebook. If I choose the feed option instead, I can read any number of RSS feeds, and in my opinion, I like the display option better than Google Reader, although, the latter is still my main feedreader of choice with all the extra options such as sharing that GR has.
If I click on the Mail envelope I can go straight to my email. I only use webmail these days – I have Gmail set up like a pop3 client. I liek having my mail up in the cloud. No more synching nonsense, and no more muttering because the email I want is on the computer at home or in the office, or whereever else I happen NOT to be at the time.
I can also add Yahoo Mail and AOL mail if I wish. I can also use the sidebar to see my Favorites, and my History. The Accounts and Services section is one of my reasons for using Flock. I can set up several Social Media networks in here, and then a single click on them will take me, already logged in, to the relevant site.
There is also a blog editor, from where I can post directly to the blogs of my choice, and a photo uploader which I can use for Facebook, Flickr and Picassa.
Once any of the above options have been set up, it’s mostly one or two clicks to get to where you want to be.
The media bar is another cool option that can also be displayed or hidden, and you can look at media from various services. One great feature of that is you can share items from the media bar by dragging them down to people that are displayed in the sidebar in the People option. Hovering over an image opens it as a larger drop down, and a double click takes you to the web page where the image is hosted.
There are a number of useful icons and indicators in the address bar. One lights up when there is a media stream in the web page you’re on (which means you can display the contents in the media bar instead of opening the page; another lights up if a feed is present in the page; and another when an installable search engine is present.
There is also an option to directly send a link in the address bar, via email, using your chosen client.
I am using Flock Beta 2, which is based on Firefox 3. This means I can run most of the Firefox 3 plugins, to give even more flexibility.
Web browsers, while not exactly replacing the OS, are certainly moving towards becoming the desktop interface, particularly for people like me, who have their head in the clouds much of the day.
Tags: blogs, double click, email, facebook, feed option, feedreader, flickr, flock, google, gr, mail envelope, media networks, media stream, nonsense, photo uploader, pop3 client, pownce, sidebar, web page, youtube
06 May 08 Strange Firefox Error
Recently Firefox started acting up when attempting to display some images.
It would work fine with thumbnails for example but clicking on them to get the full picture gave me a message saying that the image couldn’t be displayed as it contain errors. After checking numerous sites and getting the same image, I tried a windows machine with IE, and they appeared fine.
First thing to do is run Firefox in safe mode. If you’re using a windows machine, simply pull up a command line box (Start, Run), and type firefox -safe-mode in it.
That will run Firefox with everything disabled. I did that, and images worked fine. Next step is to go back to regular firefox, and disable all your add-ons. Then re-activate them, one by one, until you recreate the error.
In my case, it was my Skype Extension add-on that was causing the issue. That add-on highlights phone numbers within a web page allowing you to dial them by clicking on them, if you use Skype and SkypeOut (which I do).
I guess, I’ll have to wait for a further update, or work around, to get that facility back. I don’t use it a lot (I don’t use the phone a lot really, as I much prefer email), but it can be useful at times.
Tags: because it contains errors, cannot be displayed, firefox, images, message saying that, phone numbers, safe mode, skype, skypeout, thumbnails, web page, windows machine
03 Apr 08 Behind The Scenes
I’m not usually one for posting much on here about the cogs and gears behind the blog, but I did post a little about the new WordPress 2.5 and some issues that I found, because I know many of you also use WordPress yourself.
Of course, like anything in life, there is always stuff to do backstage.
Adding some new cool widget to hopefully enhance your visits here for example, and also making sure that everything is kept as up to date as possible to minimize security breaches, and other bugs.
It’s much the same with web sites in general, which is something I spend a large part of my day working on. Getting that web page to look ‘just right’ can take some hours of tinkering and fine tuning at times. Of course, we all know that everyone else’s job is much more exciting and glamorous than ours don’t we?
Take myself. I told so often how ‘cool’ web design is. How wonderful to work from home, and how great to have your own business.
Well, yes. web design can be cool sometimes of course. It can at times be a huge pain the butt. Yes, it’s great to get to work from home; like many people that go out to work each day, it was something I always wanted to be able to do, and by and large I don’t dislike it at all. I don’t think I’m an unsociable type, but I do work more productively on my own, and I don’t need to get a fix of the office politics or gossip, that I’ve heard some home workers mention that they miss.
Having you r own business is great too, but, at least with a small business, you’re often the CEO, CFO, secretary, tea-boy, mailroom attendant, and worker all rolled into one. You don’t have a boss anymore do you? Well kinda sorta – you have numerous clients instead, who all think they ARE your boss (and in a way they are). It can be a real art juggling between them, and letting them think they are your #1 priority at all times. Like web design itself, some of those clients can be a huge pain in the butt too. The ones that need your expertise, but still know how to do everything they’ve hired you for, better than you do.
Count ten, smile sweetly. Remember, you only have to meet them from time to time. Pity the poor souls in the office that have to put up with them all day from 9-5.
Working from home you can be a slob if you want. You can drink coffee at your desk, or eat pizza while you work. Actually I do tend to do the former, as I’m a bit of a coffee-holic but not the former, as it does mess up the keyboard, and I’m not a pizza lover myself anyway.
Some friends are convinced I sit at home all day looking at dodgy web sites, soliciting strange women online, and drinking myself silly. I wish. (Ouch, no not really, dear).
I have a four o’clock rule.
“Go wild after four?”. said one.
“Yeah, 4am”, said another, joining in rapidly to disparage my good name.
Well, not quite. I like a beer after work sometimes. So to make sure it is after work, my rule is no beer before four on a workday. You see, once I sit back in the chair with that cold beer, I don’t want to get back at the keyboard again.
Well ok, sometimes. Like now. It’s 11.15pm, I have a cold beer on the desk here while I write this, but I have no intention of doing any more work until tomorrow morning at 8am.
So, dear readers, with that, I really will kick back, and enjoy this ice-cold brew, and bid you all goodnight.
Tags: boss, ceo, cfo, cogs, cool web design, eve, gears, gossip, mailroom, office politics, own business, pain in the butt, priority, real art, security breaches, small business, web page, widget
